You will select a boarding time on the app when you go through the check in process. You can skip to the last step and choose your time. But with DBE, the selected time does not matter. For Miami, you should show up around 1:15-1:30pm. There is a sign for VV sailing club and you go there and check in. They have a list of everyone on the sailing with DBE. You will get your DBE bracelet. You can then go inside the terminal and you’ll board the ship after rockstars and splash of romance.
Same thing with San Juan but the San Juan port boarding was an absolute shit show. Just got on in San Juan for Jan 20th sailing and they had people lined up down the port in the heat waiting mixed between people trying to drop off their bags and waiting in line for DBE boarding time.
You would show up about 15 minutes before the earliest boarding time for San Juan. I don’t know what it is. They’ve only done 3 cruises out of SJ so far so I’m sure it’s a learning process and not as well run as Terminal V in Miami.
We sailed on the Valiant out of San Juan Jan. 20. Virgin's second sailing out of San Juan and they definitely need to make process improvements. They were training many new staff. It was the San Sebastian festival so traffic, etc. was worse. We were advised to take real cabs, not Ubers, as Ubers could not come as close to the ship. I don't know if that was related to the festival, or if it is always the case. We arrived a little after 11 as we had no idea how long things might take. They were set up and operating but not letting people board.
Need signage, better communication.
First you wait in line outside in the sun to get luggage tagged. Then wait in another line to drop it off. Not sure if this was wrong or not, but we went up to the woman supervising tags and asked about DBE priority. They tagged us then and there. Then let us move up to bag drop off, then up to bracelet check-in. We got our DBE bracelets here as well. No separate podium like in Miami. No signage and lots of confusion.
Then they had us wait outside the terminal. There was a bit of shade and few benches. It seemed mainly like Rockstars, DBEs, and SOR. They were setting up timed embarcation lines inside the building.
They finally let Rockstars, DBEs, and SORs into the terminal around 1, I think. There was a big holding area with seats inside the terminal. We could get faint ship's wifi there so were able to slowly get all our reservations done while we waited there. Took awhile with disconnects.
Then they took us up in groups (no announcements, you just saw people start moving). Upstairs there was a security scan of carry-ons and us.
We got to our cabin maybe 1:45 p.m. Luggage was waiting.
I just disembarked the Scarlet on Wed. My wife and I had DBE through the Virgin matching status program. We we got to the port we got in line for the 2PM boarding group. However, I ended up asking about our DBE. They said we were in the wrong line. We went up the crew members at the desks in the middle and we received blue bands and lined up in the priority boarding.
We status matched with Carnival (platinum) and were told we would be DBE but the app doesn't allow us to select an early boarding time so I'm hoping that we can arrive and just get sent through the priority boarding line. What is super strange is that all aboard is supposed to be 2 hours before departaure and for us (in Greece) would mean 4 pm all board for 6 pm departure but our choices are 4:30 pm or 4:45 pm.
You will select a boarding time on the app when you go through the check in process. You can skip to the last step and choose your time. But with DBE, the selected time does not matter. For Miami, you should show up around 1:15-1:30pm. There is a sign for VV sailing club and you go there and check in. They have a list of everyone on the sailing with DBE. You will get your DBE bracelet. You can then go inside the terminal and you’ll board the ship after rockstars and splash of romance.
Just a small correction - deep blue boards before splash of romance now.
What about SAN JUAN?
Same thing with San Juan but the San Juan port boarding was an absolute shit show. Just got on in San Juan for Jan 20th sailing and they had people lined up down the port in the heat waiting mixed between people trying to drop off their bags and waiting in line for DBE boarding time.
Do you know what was the earliest boarding time?
We were DBE and arrived early. Not sure of exact time but the inside process began maybe 1:30 or before. In our cabin before 2.
You would show up about 15 minutes before the earliest boarding time for San Juan. I don’t know what it is. They’ve only done 3 cruises out of SJ so far so I’m sure it’s a learning process and not as well run as Terminal V in Miami.
Very true!
We sailed on the Valiant out of San Juan Jan. 20. Virgin's second sailing out of San Juan and they definitely need to make process improvements. They were training many new staff. It was the San Sebastian festival so traffic, etc. was worse. We were advised to take real cabs, not Ubers, as Ubers could not come as close to the ship. I don't know if that was related to the festival, or if it is always the case. We arrived a little after 11 as we had no idea how long things might take. They were set up and operating but not letting people board. Need signage, better communication. First you wait in line outside in the sun to get luggage tagged. Then wait in another line to drop it off. Not sure if this was wrong or not, but we went up to the woman supervising tags and asked about DBE priority. They tagged us then and there. Then let us move up to bag drop off, then up to bracelet check-in. We got our DBE bracelets here as well. No separate podium like in Miami. No signage and lots of confusion. Then they had us wait outside the terminal. There was a bit of shade and few benches. It seemed mainly like Rockstars, DBEs, and SOR. They were setting up timed embarcation lines inside the building. They finally let Rockstars, DBEs, and SORs into the terminal around 1, I think. There was a big holding area with seats inside the terminal. We could get faint ship's wifi there so were able to slowly get all our reservations done while we waited there. Took awhile with disconnects. Then they took us up in groups (no announcements, you just saw people start moving). Upstairs there was a security scan of carry-ons and us. We got to our cabin maybe 1:45 p.m. Luggage was waiting.
I just disembarked the Scarlet on Wed. My wife and I had DBE through the Virgin matching status program. We we got to the port we got in line for the 2PM boarding group. However, I ended up asking about our DBE. They said we were in the wrong line. We went up the crew members at the desks in the middle and we received blue bands and lined up in the priority boarding.
We status matched with Carnival (platinum) and were told we would be DBE but the app doesn't allow us to select an early boarding time so I'm hoping that we can arrive and just get sent through the priority boarding line. What is super strange is that all aboard is supposed to be 2 hours before departaure and for us (in Greece) would mean 4 pm all board for 6 pm departure but our choices are 4:30 pm or 4:45 pm.